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WHEN IT COMES to growing hotel revenue, size does not matter. Economy hotels and micro-inventory properties are experiencing one of the biggest booms in recent years, thanks partly to a massive resurgence in small group travel, changing economic trends, and the staying power of global "return to travel". CBRE noted economy and midscale hotels recovered to 2019 performance levels by 2021, and properties with fewer rooms may benefit from lower operating costs when compared to their big-box brethren-though they also tend to have fewer resources with which to hire revenue professionals. Revenue managers are driving the charge for better operating returns. Many are taking the lessons they learned from their success at larger hotels and applying these truths to the industry's smaller properties. These revenue managers leverage new technology and strategies, options that small hotels with smaller, cross-functional staff haven't fully embraced. However, competition among economy hotels and properties tends to be fierce, requiring new action, especially with recent economic pressures and a downward 2023 RevPAR forecast of 0.2 percent in recent data shared by Tourism Economics . Modern revenue management practices and technology can provide these hotels with many benefits and significant competitive advantages. Small hotels need to avoid the erratic rate shifts of the past and capitalize on new trends as they emerge. By embracing strong revenue management systems and discipline in these properties, operators can realize greater control over a typically inconsistent space. Room Enough for Revenue The most common misconception about revenue management's place in hospitality is that it is the domain of large or full-service hotels. This is simply not the case today. No two hotels are the same, in practice, with key differences always existing between the layout of a property, its location, third-party partnerships, and so on. Every hotel has different r

SOFTWARE PLATFORM SITEMINDER, led by CEO Sankar Narayan, has partnered with PMS software developer Cloudbeds to provide more service to its 60,000 hotelier clients. The collaboration allows Cloudbeds clients direct access to SiteMinder's revenue platform, while SiteMinder users can leverage Cloudbeds' PMS platform. "In late 2023, we announced our mission of making sophisticated revenue management accessible to every hotel in the world," said Narayan. "We are excited to partner with an industry leader like Cloudbeds to propel this mission, by removing the friction that comes with having critical data hidden away in isolated systems. This partnership is a testament to the $50 billion hotel revenue that is processed by SiteMinder's platform each year as well as the unique position that we hold to completely transform revenue management for the global hotel industry. It continues SiteMinder's long history of breaking down silos in a highly-fragmented industry."

Bill Fanning is now the chief revenue officer at Stayntouch, a cloud-based hotel property management software developer. Previously, he was senior vice president of sales at Compeat, part of Restaurant365's enterprise suite, covering accounting, inventory, scheduling, payroll, and HR solutions. In his new role at Stayntouch, Fanning will oversee revenue strategy and expansion efforts, focusing on customer value, strategic partnerships and global commercial growth across North America, Europe and global markets. "We are pleased to welcome Bill Fanning to our team," said Jacob Messina, Stayntouch's CEO. "His exceptional track record and experience in the hospitality industry and enterprise sales make him the perfect fit to lead our commercial strategy. Bill shares our unwavering commitment to customer success and innovation. His expertise will be instrumental in strengthening our relationships with hotel partners and enterprise customers, ensuring we continue to deliver solutions that address the most pressing challenges faced by hotel owners and operators today."

ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING stations are a growing fixture at hotels around the U.S. Now, EV charging hardware and software producer EVPassport has released a new cloud-based system that connects its users to the hotel's guest services platform. The EVPassport Hotel Cloud, a variation of the company's cloud platform designed specifically for the hospitality industry, offers several options beside a simple charge. Guests can use the platform to locate the hotel on all EV charging location maps and apps. It allows owners to set charging prices, manage access and get details on energy usage, earnings history and carbon offset. EVPassport Hotel Cloud's "scan and charge" QR code technology allows users to pay without needing fobs, apps or cards. Hotels get an extra revenue stream from the stations, which can be wrapped in the hotel's name, logo and colors.

IDEAS, A SAS company specializing in hospitality revenue management software, recently integrated nearly 2,000 properties with the Oracle Hospitality Integration Platform. This connects their RMS solutions, including IDeaS G3 RMS, with Oracle's OPERA Cloud platform, accessible via OHIP and the Oracle Cloud Marketplace, the companies said in a joint statement. "The hospitality industry has long craved faster data exchanges and more capabilities to handle ever-increasing data volumes, and OHIP delivers precisely that," said Klaus Kohlmayr, IDeaS' chief evangelist and development officer. "By accelerating data exchange and efficiently transmitting the staggering 12 billion pricing decisions IDeaS processes daily, OHIP empowers us to innovate faster as partners with Oracle. This goes beyond pricing and forecasting. It unlocks the true potential of data-driven revenue management, allowing hoteliers to make smarter decisions and achieve optimal results." The two companies share nearly 10,000 clients, the statement said. IDeaS is connecting 50 to 100 hotels per week, allowing for faster implementation of future capabilities and additional solutions.

Hotels are a business and business is about are making money.That's why a major focus for the industry now is on the technology that improves revenue generation. One company aiming to meet that need in Bloomington-Minnesota based ideas founded by life-long friends and colleagues Ravi Mehrotra and Sanjay Nagalia.Using their background in artificial intelligence ,they have created a revenue management system, that has been deployed by 19000 hotel properties, including recently added Choice Hotels International with that company's launch of its ChoiceMax program. Ideas software offers clients the ability to make rate decisions based on multiple factors that are most human brains can fully calculate.The program puts all the relevant data together in a comprehensive manner.